1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to a replenishment management system, method, and program and more particularly to a replenishment management system, method, and program which provides just in time delivery to an acquiring entity, which may comprise a distribution center, wholesaler or any other supply chain system of components or products.
2. Description of the Related Art
Availability of components necessary to manufacture a product is a major challenge to the manufacturer of that product. Typically, delivery of components to the manufacturer usually involves three separate parties: the supplier, the replenishment service center (“warehouse or RSC”) and the manufacturer. In the most basic sense, the availability of each component needs to be monitored to ensure an adequate supply is available to the manufacturer. The warehouse supplying the manufacturer and the supplier to the warehouse are further challenged to meet the demand for components without over stocking the components. However, maximizing the efficiency of delivering the components has been a constant problem in the prior art. For example, if the manufacturer finds either an increased or reduced demand in the product compared to its forecast, strain is placed throughout the supply chain where overstocking or depletion of components can occur quickly. In addition, if the supplier cannot deliver the components, manufacturers will often not be able to react quickly to meet demand, seek alternative sources, etc. Without keeping large stock of components on-hand in the warehouse, supply problems occur readily. However, keeping large stock has additional problems of its own, such as higher storage costs, an increased loss probability because components become outdated, etc. Moreover, electronic parts tend to reduce in value with time (i.e. a part that the manufacturer purchases in January will cost less in March and much less in June and so on).
Systems in the prior art have attempted to address this replenishment problem using various systems and methods. Internal MRP (“Material Requirement Planning”) or ERP (“Enterprise Resource Planning”) systems would manage components based on a forecast prepared by the manufacturer. However, forecasts are never precise, and often subject to changes. In recent years, to better match actual production with forecasts calculated by the MRP system, a Just-in-Time (“JIT”) concept was developed. In a JIT environment, a network of phones and faxes is used to monitor each point in an assembly line where someone would be responsible for counting each set of components as they are assembled into a product (i.e. a manual pull system). Thereby, the responsible party would order additional components by phone or fax as components are running short. However, such JIT systems require constant monitoring, and still are highly dependent on accurate forecasts. Although better forecasting tools have been developed over the years, replenishment issues have remained a problem for manufacturers. As the manufacturing world begins to move to build-to-order environment, greater demands are expected from the manufacturer to 1) lower total costs in the complete supply chain 2) shorten throughput times 3) reduce stock to a minimum and 4) provide more reliable delivery dates without constraining production due to supply issues.
Accordingly, there is a need in the art for an improved replenishment management system that addresses the concerns of the supplier, the manufacturer, and the RSC.